World Antibiotic Awareness Week

In support of the World Antibiotic Awareness Week, UTAR Faculty of Science (FSc), in collaboration with the Centre for Research on Communicable Diseases (CRCD), organised a campaign titled “The World Antibiotics Awareness Week (WAAW) 2017”, which was held from 13 to 19 November in both Kampar and Sungai Long Campuses.

With the objectives to raise awareness on the rational use of antibiotics and to tackle antimicrobial resistance among humans and livestock, CRCD has actively utilised the related posters from World Health Organisation (WHO) to educate the public, especially the staff and students of the university, on antibiotic resistance.

“For this campaign, we have generated six posters with the help of WHO, and exhibited them on the faculty’s notice board. We hope that through this straightforward but informative method, not only should staff and students realise the spread of antimicrobial resistance and its underlying causes, but also aware about their responsibility to help tackle the problem,” said Department of Biomedical Science lecturer Saw Seow Hoon.

Saw added, “It is important to seek advice from a qualified healthcare professional before taking antibiotics in order to not misuse it since it is a precious resource that ensures best treatment as well as to reduce the threat of antibiotic resistance. Therefore we must understand the benefits of the antibiotics in treating diseases as well as its danger in an increased risk of antibiotic resistance when we misuse it.

She also expressed her hope for the campaign to be beneficial to the students, whereby addressing their curiosity about antibiotic resistance and improving their understanding towards the principal of antibiotics, which they might have learnt from the textbooks.

Meanwhile, CRCD Chairperson Prof Dr Ngeow Yun Fong mentioned, “The unifying theme in all these activities is the dire threat to the treatment of infectious diseases posed by multidrug resistance (MDR) among human and animal pathogens. The rapid rise and spread of antibiotic resistance is a global crisis that is fuelled by antibiotic abuse and misuse, such as over-prescription by physicians and veterinarians, purchase of antibiotics by the public without a doctor’s prescription and the use of antibiotics as animal growth promoters in livestock and aquaculture.”

“Antibiotic-resistant infections are associated with increased morbidity, mortality and healthcare costs. There are infections in many parts of the world, for which there are now no adequate therapeutic options left. These infections are not just confined to hospital settings but are also seen increasingly in the community. As the development of new antibiotics is slow and there is no novel antibacterial yet on the horizon, it is crucial to prolong the useful life of currently available antibiotics. The World Antibiotic Awareness Week is one of many the strategies towards this aim,” said Prof Ngeow.

At Sungai Long campus, additional exciting activities were held, which included a poster competition that was participated by the medical students and staff of the Pathogen Lab in Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences (FMHS), and a talk was given by Department of Medical Microbiology Dr Rina N.Karunakaran from the University of Malaya, which was held at Ampang Clinical Training Centre (CTC). A quiz competition was organised and an online survey was conducted via mailmaster to obtain feedback from the staff and students.

The World Antibiotic Awareness Week is a joint effort by the WHO, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), and the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE), to promote rational use of antibiotics in humans and animals to reduce the emergence of antibiotic resistance. 

Posters from MBBS students

FMHS Prof Dr Jenny Parameshvara Deva and Prof Ngeow posing with the posters

Prof Ngeow (centre) presenting the token of appreciation to Prof Rina (right) while Prof Jenny looks on

(Seated front row, second from left) Prof Jenny, Prof Ngeow and Assoc Prof
Dr Thaw Zin with the quiz participants 

Saw (left) explaining about antibiotic resistance to student

Second from left: FSc lecturer Dr Yap Moh Lan and Saw (second from right) taking a friendly photo with students

Posters at FSc’s notice board